The New Member of The Band...

We pay her chicken feed and she has great looking legs....and damn, she can cluck up a storm and bocks like a pro....

introducing....Henrietta.

The view from here...

The view from here...
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

I am sitting in my hotel room in Ohio, slowly getting myself ready to hit the road for our show in Cincinnati this afternoon. My computer is on my lap with my new favorite website, zillow.com, on my screen. It let's me look at pretty pictures of houses in the areas we are interested in.

Its an interesting experience....looking for a home.....for an itinerant musician. Add into that mix the words 'legal alien' and it adds another interesting twist. People are always astounded to find out that I have a social security number, pay taxes and health care here in the US and yes, have to renew my visa every 3 years AND I have to pay thousands of dollars to make that happen.

You really have to want to be here to make all that happen, let me just say.

My visa is up for renewal again this December and I occasionally have mini panic attacks in the form of 'what if they don't renew it' as I am finally looking to put roots down somewhere. My inside voice then goes through this whole conversation along the lines of 'why wouldn't they....you've been working hard, they have renewed it the last 3 times and there really is no reason why not.'

That calms my inner scared child for but a minute.

I can tell that there is a little part of me that is scared about putting roots down......especially here (for reasons other than my visa). My visa thing just adds to that. Its an interesting process in practising standing in my strength, power, grace, truth and light and not letting anyone stand in the way of what the universe has in store for me....which also includes WHERE I live. There are so many good reasons for us being here though, and I know that....and I hold onto that, whilst soothing the other parts of me on this cloudy Sunday morning in Ohio.

Xxm

Working hard.....

Working hard.....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

In Chillicothe, Ohio....

My girl announcing her new 'one beer, one apple a day' infomercial.

I think she's onto something, don't you?!

Xxm

Hmmm

Hmmm
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

I know some folks I would like to send here......

Birds eye view....

Birds eye view....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

Do you think the people who live at this house actually sit in these chairs and make conversation?

Given the chance, I think I would sit there....at least just for a minute to see what life looks like from there.

Xxm

The Adventures of One Little Aussie - Episode 10

At last...at last...a new one! This video features footage from Milwaukee & Columbus Pride and the world in between the two gigs!

Enjoy!

Mongolian surprise.....

Mongolian surprise.....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

Its been years since I have been to a mongolian restaurant and the draw was just too much for me to resist tonight. In town this week are D's nephews, Riley and Hayden and their dad Jack. They go home tomorrow after a week full of adventures around the Midwest and so, we went out to spend the last night with them.

Hence, Mongolian....

I know, a completely uninspired blog post today....seems my brain is taken up with planning and making and getting ready for the next run how shows. We have been house hunting up a storm and thought we found one, but have since decided that perhaps we need to keep looking. We are both ready to make our home though....excited by the possibilities and the home that we will create together.

But for now, its back to looking for 'it'.....

Xxm

Todays order of business....

Todays order of business....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

Some say its good preparation for when we get our own house. I am sure its the people whose house is usually getting painted that say such things...

Me, I just say we are good mates helping out friends and damn, that house better get here soon....

Xxm

The grief of distance...

The grief of distance...
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

We just spent the day with Dionne's dad, Dale, and step mum, Ginny.

I love them both a tonne. Great, fun, enlightened people who I enjoy spending 10 hours with talking about politics, wine, religion and life.

And, they both live in CA. Which is a few thousand miles away from where we are living right now.

They asked if we could go look at some of the houses d and I have been looking at. They were excited to be involved in the process with us. Knowing that it means a lot to us and that they wanted to be involved in something that meant that much to us.

I love them for that, and for the questions and the challenges they put to us in our business and in our lives.

But they live a long way from us. And again, it reminds me of the grief I feel when I think about the people I love who are a long way from me. My family and my great friends who live all around the country and the world....and how much I wish we could be closer.

I watched as Dale held Dionne tonight and told her how much he missed her and how proud he was of her and how she had to live her life in the way that she loved. I see the way he looks at her with pride and the deep love of a beautiful father. I see the way in wich he honors and respects and cherishes our relationship and I felt so honored to be a part of this. To have my faith in fathers restored and to have tears well up in my eyes at witnessing the beauty of their relationship.

Somewhere it heals part of me too.

But damn, the distance is a fucker.

Xxm

Spider dancing...

Spider dancing...
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

In the dark.

I hate spiders at the best of times. All those years of poisonous spiders in Australia and having curly hair...and the fear of the two combining.

But this, is pretty impressive...

Xxm

Amazing...

I know the work they do on photographs and advertising, but I have never watched it actually happen before.

This is amazing, thought provoking and maybe AT last all us women will stop comparing ourselves to THEM....the fake creations of photoshop specialists around the world.

xxM

Here she be....

Here she be....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

No color yet, but glorious!

THE day....

THE day....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

I have wanted a sleeve tattoo for a long time.

I LOVE sunflowers, they have always been my favourite flower.

So....today, I put them both together.

The line work is done on my arm, by the wonderful Matt at Metamorphisis, and I must be honest and tell you that I am NOW drinking a beer. It stings like sunburn but I have the beginnings of a beautiful, beautiful tattoo.

My girl, who designed it, sat with me while he worked on me and it felt like a wonderful expression of creativity, love and life.....all mixed together.

So damn happy with it.

Gets color in two weeks.....

Woo fucking whoo!

Xxm

Art....

Art....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

The city of Des Moines, Iowa is in the middle of finishing a huge area downtown that is public park area filled with amazing sculptures such as this one. A local businessman donated a pile of art from his collection gathered from artists all around the world and gave it to the city.

The rumor is though that these are strictly to look at, and not to touch. That alarm systems are being installed to tell people to 'back away from the public work of arts' if the come too close. Hmmm.

Nice little show here in Des Moines last night. Hanging with Linda, the owner of the cafe was a highlight. Sitting on the back stoop of her house telling and listening to stories and laughing hard, love that stuff. I feel grateful for people like her around this country. People who I have worked with, who have become good treasured friends. Yay.

So, I was told if you walk into this sculpture and look up, the word you see is 'gay'.

Hee hee.....

Xxm

Education is a team effort.....

Education is a team effort.....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

So I have had this idea that I have been thinking about the last few months. I have been throwing it around a little with my friend Amanda who is a special ed teacher here at Crete Elementary school in IL. I hear every year about how much money she personally puts into her class and the kids that she teaches. How her budget for supplies and teaching materials is really small and in order to teach and to encourage her kids to learn, she has to use her own money.

Now, we all know that school teachers in Australia AND the USA (and most likely other countries that I don't know about) aren't paid what they should be and that education is continually being cut in budgets. Budgets that seem to raise enough money to track down invisible weapons of mass destruction.....but don't get me started.

So, my idea is to pick one teacher (to begin with) in each State that I play in regularily, get a list of needed school supplies from them and then every show give folks the opportunity to bring a donation from the list. You know, kinda like the 'bring a can' food drives. This way though, we all get to help teachers in your own communities and see the outcome of it here. I will post photos and stories and hopefully even build its own page here on my site. My intention would be to grow it so that we can set it up in every country we play in.

What do you think? Thoughts, suggestions, concerns all welcomed. Would you, kind reader, support this idea?

Let me know!

Xxm

And...

And...
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

The winner for this minute?

Deep fried Reese's peanut butter cups.

Hmm...strangely nice

Mecca....

Mecca....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

A deep fried mecca that is. Fried Pepsi. Fried snickers. Fried pizza. Fried peanut butter cups, fried oreo's. Fried milky way.

And next door?

Chocolate covered bacon....

Now, which to choose...?

Second stop

Second stop
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

The cheese sculpture.....

I know, hard to believe, its all cheese.

Amazing, no?

My first stop.....

My first stop.....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

At the indiana state fair......

Makes me weep....

One Year.....

One year ago today...or actually, yesterday in real life days (as opposed to dates), I kissed Dionne for the first time. We had become friends in December of 07 (after first meeting in Indianapolis a few years prior) and had spent a lot of time talking to each other about relationships and life. She had been a great friend and adviser to me during my bad patch last year and then I to her after that and slowly along the way we became closer and closer until one day I got a text off her that said 'why is it that every time i think about calling you, I feel like a fucking teenager'.

I remember the way my face hurt from smiling so hard.

I called her right away and we talked and giggled our way through a conversation about how we were feeling, that lead into other conversations about even deeper feelings and badda bing....we both had an 'oh ohhhh' moment.

I was going to play at the Utah womens festival in August and was scheduled to hang out in San Francisco for a few weeks after that and to play the NorCal Womens festival. I headed off to Utah with a plan to head down to LA for a few days at the end of my tour to spend some real life eye to eye time with D to 'see how it felt'. The night before I left Utah, I changed my plane tickets to fly out at 6am the next morning straight to LA. I knew I couldn't wait a few weeks....I knew that despite everything that had happened to me previously, that I HAD to be fully present and just dive....and so I did.

The rest, as they say, is history. Or in this case...her-story.

I landed in LA that morning after driving for three hours to get to the airport by 6am and walked through the doors at the airport and felt my heart leap when I saw her standing there waiting for me. A huge grin on her face. Her beautiful eyes already looking at me with so much love and so much excitement.

I remember that I had this huge plan to kiss her in the elevator on the way up to the car park...which was thwarted when a pile of people got into the elevator and stood between us. I remember touching her arm for the first time when we got into the car...and how we both giggled like little kids. I remember being giddy with excitement and expectation and still, a little scared about what I was feeling and what it would mean to my life. I remember how much my face hurt from smiling...and how much my belly hurt from laughing.

I remember so many things, most of which I won't bore you with.

All of that, was one year ago today.

We have had a hell of a year, let me tell you. Falling in love; traveling between two cities; falling in love more; D's brother Tyler getting sick and then passing away tragically and so unexpectedly; moving to LA; falling more in love; developing a plan/idea to have D come out on the road with me; D quitting her job; packing up our apartment and putting our home...our new home..in storage; driving all over the country doing some amazing and really shitty gigs and shows; using Indianapolis (a place D use to live and said she would never live in again) as a home base; deciding that, for a time, we would use Indy as a base; looking for a house; touring and trying to develop a creative business in a depressed economy; falling more in love; planning trips around the world; learning how to be more honest and more direct with what we want and need....and hell, I am tired just typing all of that out. It's been a HUGE year.....and there is only one thing I would change if I could, because I would have loved the opportunity to know Tyler more.

And here we sit....our first anniversary.

I am so unbelievably thankful that her smiling eyes are the first thing I see every morning. I still laugh out loud when I open my sleepy eyes every morning and see her looking back at me with a big smile on her face. I feel so honored to be loved and cherished by such an amazing woman. I feel so blessed that this is my life, that we are working it out together...that we are on the same page with what we want in this life and in this relationship. That we lay ourselves on the line towards one another in our honesty and vulnerability and desire to be the best that we can be for ourselves and towards one another....knowing that belief and desire can only do good in the world and in us. I am so proud of her, of who she chooses and desires to be in the world. I am inspired by her journey and in her laughter and in her eyes.

I love her and will soon stand in front of our friends and loved ones and proudly marry her....knowing that it is she I desire to be with, that it is she I fall more in love with daily, that it is she that the universe brought to me, when I least expected it.

And that it is she, sitting across from me on this august morning, that I am about to stand up and walk towards...and lay a big sloppy one on her sweet lips.

Coz it is she, that I am thankful for.

So much so, that it makes my heart want to pop with glee.....

The visitor...

The visitor...
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

Can you see him there? I found him crawling or running up my arm and he scared the shit out of me. but I stood and watched in amazement as he came running back towards me, turning his head my way as I spoke to him....like he somehow understood everything. I got down to his level and watched him, or her, follow the sound of my voice, turning his head like an inquisitive child. He reached out his little stumpy arms and pulled himself up onto this table (from the arm of the chair) and ran straight for my margarita spill......and I am certain that I saw a smile on his face.

Xxm

Green...

Green...
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

As far as the eye can see. Its so beautiful but I would never want to live in it.

Just appreciating beauty out here in indiana....who knew.

Xm

The perfect answer....

The perfect answer....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

To a day like today. Sitting by the water, with my favorite person, eating good food, drinking good wine, at my favorite cafe here in indy.

Ahhhhhh.....

The Workings of It...

I know, very heavy on the pottery images right now. I am not really doing as much of it as it might seem but it seems every time I do it, it really symbolizes something for me in some way. I also really liked this photo that Dionne took of me making my aforementioned cup....I cannot wait to finish it..and I cannot wait to have it in my home...and I cannot wait to drink from it.

I think I could get hooked on this pottery thing.

We are having a few moments over this way of gulping.....one is because I made my tattoo appointment today. I have talked for a long time about getting a sleeve done on my right arm and I believe the time is here. I have two weeks off after the 17th and figured it was a good time to get it done. I am a little scared. More so of the cost of doing it than anything. I always question spending money on something like a tattoo...a 'want' rather than a 'need'. It doesn't quite seem as useful as I would like a purchase to be...other than looking at the pretty of it. It's also the first time I have gotten color put on a tattoo....I am actually excited about that because I think the guy who is doing it does great color/shading work. I just have to sit and get more acquainted with what I am actually having on there...to get myself use to it. I know it will be very sunflower heavy....as they are my favorite flower in all the world and i have talked about a sunflower tattoo for years.

The other gulp is in the house realm. We snuck onto the property of this house today to sneak a peek in the windows. It looks like someone had started to renovate it and then it got too hard. It's old...and big....and needs a lot of cosmetic work...but wow, is it beautiful. Think screened in back porch with a high A frame ceiling with a deck running off it...original 1900 woodwork throughout...including original pocket doors in the main living area, ornate wooden door frames and even two wooden pillars in the entry way. HUGE living area with built in shelves and cabinets and two fireplaces (downstairs) and wood floors throughout. Amazing stair case leading up to the 5 bedrooms upstairs. Stained glass windows and front porch. And all for an amazingly cheap price.

We have no clue of the inner workings of it yet....past a real estate agent telling us that the structure, pipes and electrics were good. It would need time and money from us to bring it back up to par but.....it could be the home we have both dreamt about. Big enough to eventually include a studio, room for friends and loved ones to hang, wood (can you tell I like wood?)and a beautiful refection of who we both are.

We are excited but scared too. What if it takes every cent we ever earn. What if the work required on it puts too much stress on our relationship. What if it area is still a little sketchy. What if there's mold. What if...what if...what if.

And what if we miss out on it....

If we get it now it means that it will have to sit and wait for us until we get back from Australia & our West Coast tours...which would most likely be around the end of March. That's a long time to leave a house sitting...waiting. We could be working on it right now and we have a friend that we would want to start doing some construction work on it while we are away. But we really wouldn't be able to jump fully into until after we get back (and therefore get all our belongings from CA at the same time).

I know and believe that things happen in their time for a reason. I also believe that its up to us to be open to being in the right place for the right thing to happen...and I also believe that sometimes getting the right thing for us, means taking a leap and trusting and believing that it's all going to fall into place. So maybe that's just what I need to do.....again. I have been marveling of late at the fact that I am in Indianapolis, given my experience within it last year. But I have been marveling more on the fact that the universe was possibly setting up for me to be here for a period of time all the way along...but that I had to be willing to wait for the right chain of events to occur to bring me here. I can tell you, I am more than thrilled with the circumstances of me being here and with the person that I am here with, as opposed to what could have been.

So.....given that, do we sit back and wait...do we push forward and pursue...or do we just do what we can, in the time we have and trust and believe that if it's right, it will happen. That we will make it happen. That it will fall into place to enable it to happen for us? That she will be safe while we are gone and under the loving gaze of our friends and family here.


Can you tell I am thinking out loud?

And when it happens, can you see yourself sipping tea on the porch with us?

xxM

Bored....?

Watch This.....

The Storm....

So, I completely stole this photo from somewhere....I didn't take it....I did it because the photos my phone is capturing are NO WHERE near good enough to show you, or to do justice to the magnificent storm that is rolling through Indiana right now. It's really quite impressive. Until someone (namely D) says;

'ohh, oh'

And I say...

'what do you mean ohhh, oh'

'ohhh, oh isn't good'.

The last time I heard 'ohhh, oh' in relation to a storm was in Milwaukee, WI and 10 minutes later I stood in the middle of the Summerfest grounds wondering what that loud noise was and why everyone was running to the brick toilets.

See...no one ever teaches us about tornados in Australia. At least not where I grew up. All my brain does when some one mentions that word is have flashes of Dorothy and Toto....that's it. I have NO clue what to do if there is word of a possible tornado anywhere. I would be an extremely bad friend to have with you should one ever be anywhere near you....I would be the one walking around with her mouth open looking up at the pretty sky and wondering why everything just got super quiet all of a sudden. As is evidenced by my Milwaukee experience (visualize me stopping someone to ask why they are running to the toilet), I would be the one still standing outside while everyone else has jumped in the hole and locked the door.

D just text our friend Paula to tell her that we aren't leaving her house....that she will find us here when she comes home.

She will probably find me sitting looking out the window saying 'ohhhh' and 'ahhhhh' with every crack of lightening. Wide eyed and high, looking for Toto and Dorothy out there in the rain...


xxM

See this?

See this?
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

Its the last little piece of wallpaper and its a shit to get off. I curse all people who put wallpaper in their houses, and then painted over it.....twice.

D and I have decided that if we walk into a place that has wallpaper, that we are walking out of it.

I am standing here at the base of the ladder, holding a beer for my girl as she takes the last piece off a huge wall we have been working on the last few hours.....and I get giddy over the thought of doing all of this with her in OUR house. The home that we will create together. For years I have helped other people with their houses; I have painted and sanded and tiled and laid floors and mowed grass and ripped wallpaper off.....and any minute now, I get to do it for myself. For our home.

Yeah fucking ha......and NEVER put wallpaper up and most definitely, NEVER paint over it.

That's what I have learned today....

Xxm

Beautiful....

Beautiful....
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

And the bowl she made aint bad either.....

The Things We Make....

So, with all this time 'off' the road, it has left time for other things. Looking for homes that we can make what we want, riding bikes, getting bored and not sure what to do with myself, hanging with mates, making new things for MuseKraft, appearing in short films....and then....

Sticking my hands in mud.....

It's a lot of fun and kinda meditative. Went over to Cathy & Joyce's place tonight (people who read regularly will know them as the 'indy mummas')....to finish off pots that we had made a week or so back. Before I even got there I had decided that I needed to make a cup...you know, one that will become my favorite coffee drinking mug...hopefully to go with the cool house that we buy to do up and make our own. I knew I needed to make a mug so once I had finished sanding my bottle chiller (as I am calling it), I got to working on the mug. With Cathy as my able and very very patient and kind teacher, I was able to finally come up with a funky mug kinda thing that I KNOW I will be proud to show people when they ask...'wow, where did you get that funky mug kinda thing from?". It's fun to be creative in different ways...to take a piece of mud and fashion it into something you can use...or just look at and say 'yeah, I made that'. That is one thing I love love love about being creative, knowing that I can look at something and have a whole different experience with it that most people...well, than anyone else but me can have with it. I look at so many things that people declare to be 'trash' and come up with a new way to use it. As Joyce said tonight, I am the eternal optimist that can make something out of it all....

I like that.

I like the giddy feeling I get in my belly when I look at a house that isn't perfect and can see what it could be. I like that I can look at a lopsided, not quite even or the same shape all the way around wet piece of clay and declare it to be the most perfect mug EVER. I don't always get out of the way of myself and I definitely sometimes let my fear of failure get in the way (as is evidenced by my 'nay' to the request to sing the national anthem at a basketball game recently). But when you can take a big blob of dirt, put your hands in it and feel it change beneath your fingers and make something beautiful....well, there's nothing like that feeling to chase all the others away. It's totally sexy and makes my heart glad.

That's my Sunday night...and now I am sleepy, helping mates paint the ceilings in their new home tomorrow, and you know how much fun that is.

Night mates....

xxM

Hour 13

Hour 13 became the name of the band that we made for the filming of the movie today. It was a lot of fun and we get to see the footage all put together on Thursday (details for the film screening are below). Think smoke machines, early mornings, too much coffee and rockin jams......

This is a self portrait of me and Jay Hinkelman in the background. Jay is one of the writers of the film and plays a mean keyboard too.

xxm


Premiere Screenings
Date: Aug. 6
Time: 7 & 9:30 p.m.
Place: Indianapolis Museum of Art - The Toby, 4000 Michigan Rd. Indianapolis, IN 46208
Tickets: $10 for one screening, $15 for both
Notes: Concessions, including beer and wine, will be available for purchase at the screening event. Winners will be announced after the second screening.

3 O'clock Productions will be screening in the second block at 9:30.

48 hour film festival...

48 hour film festival...
Originally uploaded by martine.locke

Here we be, setting up for the first shoot this morning. We are working with my mate Jim who has an entry in the international 48 hour film festival. They have 48 hours to script, story board, shoot and edit a 4 - 7 minute movie. There are 30 teams here in Indianapolis and we are here to be a part of his movie 'Two Bits'.

More photos soon, right now, gotta finish make up!!

Xxm